Gone are the days of a bell-cow running back in Pittsburgh, according to Pittsburgh Steelers beat reporter Gerry Dulac. After having success the last few years riding a committee of Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren, Dulac expects the Steelers to continue their running back by committee style even without Harris.
Dulac was on The Steelers Wrap Up Show, posted to the Steelers YouTube, and said he expects to see Warren back but is not sure about Harris returning. This prompted Rich Walsh to ask him if Warren would be the number one running back.
“I think though it’ll still be by committee, Rich,” answered Dulac. “I mean, that’s really the way they’ve done it. I mean, I know Najee Harris was number one, but, Jaylen Warren was 1A and they rotated him.”
If Harris is gone, it will be interesting to see who the Steelers decide to pair with Warren. The answer would likely come from the NFL Draft, but the question is how high can Pittsburgh realistically take a running back.
Sure Harris has rushed for 1,000 yards every year of his NFL career and has been a good running back, but you won’t find many people who say he was worth a first round pick. Additionally, Pittsburgh has so many bigger needs like wide receiver, cornerback, defensive line, and offensive line that it would be questionable to draft a running back in the first three rounds given they already have Warren.
Last season, Harris played 50.40% of the snaps offensively and had 299 touches on the season. Warren played 39.59% of the snaps and had 158 touches for the Steelers.
The Steelers can’t bring RB Cordarrelle Patterson back as he lost all his burst after his injury and was largely ineffective even if the stats say he rushed or 4.2 yards per carry.
In the current NFL going running back by committee is smart. The Steelers should continue to do that, especially with there being somewhat of an unknown of Warren’s ability to be a true RB1. Personally, I’d try and bring Harris back on a cheap short deal. The next best thing to do would be to try and draft a late round running back and hope he is capable of carrying a decent load in a committee.
